Welcome to my creative corner of the North Texas. Here in Sherman, Texas we have the smartest students, the meanest sports, the toughest players and the best young adults with the wildest ideas for HOMECOMING MUMS. This is where I mix, pair, glue, tape, tie, braid, clash, match and staple most any ribbon, sticker or trinket that your heart desires for your HOMECOMING MUM.

Here are a few photos of my evergrowing building station. So far I use the 2 tables you see, a mum hanger (for ease of assembly too) and many types of storage bins, boxes and drawers.

HOMECOMING MUMS & a little history . . .

Chysanthemums (the flower at the top) can range from 5"-9" in diameter, but I chose the 6" because of the petal length and it has a fuller look. One to three Mums can be connected to a sturdy background with ribbons, whips, braids, streamers, and garland attached to the bottom ranging 2'-4' feet long. Of course the bigger the better and these days HOMECOMING MUMS have become flashy & entertaining billboards for the home team.
Mums must also have bells, whistles and at least one activity item (tiny football, basketball, etc...) and a rabbits foot for good luck. The charms and trinkets are meant to represent the wearer and can be usable noisemakers (like small whistles). Letters are also added down the ribbons to show the wearer's name, school, and future year of graduation. The ribbons hang down to the young ladies knees with enough trinkets, charms and bells to make any girl glow with delight.

The Mums and garters are worn to celebrate HOMECOMING. The young women wear them as corsages that hang almost to the floor, the boys wear a smaller matching garter on their arms. In the past a band Mother held a mum-making party, she would provide the supplies and each kid would donate to make their mum (corsage or garter). Each boy/girl gets a corsage/garter for their date which are exchanged during school on Friday of HOMECOMING weekend.

The Mum is said to derive from exchanging corsages to attend the homecoming dance and has now been turned into an ongoing fad or custom if you will. The decorations (trinkets & charms) are best if gaudy and in large quantities. The finished product could range anywhere from $30 to $100 which depends on number of flowers and how detailed the decorating gets.

What is the difference between the Band Formal and the HOMECOMING Formal? In the past, band had been scheduled for competitions on the same day as the HOMECOMING formal. Since that meant that the band kids couldn't go to the HOMECOMING formal, the band formal evolved over the years as an alternate formal for the band kids to attend. It is an occasion for band members to dress up and celebrate the end of a successful marching/competition season. Since there hasn't been a scheduling conflict in many years the band kids have a choice of either formals. Some kids choose to go to both formals and some only go to the band formal. The band formal offers the advantages of being less crowded and of being composed of solely the band kids and their dates. It is also a less formal. Kids may or may not get flowers for their dates, or they may even come alone. All in all it is a nice way for all the kids to get together and celebrate at the end of football season.

Below are a few Basic Mums or starters with plenty of options available. The top row is made with a single Mum (flower), 2 different colors of ribbon streamers and the words "HOMECOMING" down the center. The bottom left shows a double Mum (2 flowers) and the bottom right are triple Mums.

Here are some samples of different sized Mums (length of ribbon), dingers (finger or shoe), garters & spirit sticks.

This website was created by "Webs by Mike" and is best viewed as 1024 x 768 using Internet Explorer 5.0 or higher, if interested in a website of your own email:
WEBSBYMIKE@YAHOO.COM